The winners of World Press Photo 2023

Today was the press opening of World Press Photo Exhibition 2023 at De Nieuwe Kerk, Amsterdam. Annabelle Birnie (director De Nieuwe Kerk) and Joumana El Zein Khoury (executive director World Press Photo) opened the photo exhibition with the World Press Photo of the Year winner: Evgeniy Maloletka. During the opening of the exhibition, they announced the four global winners.

This year’s World Press Photo Contest global winners, chosen from thousands of entrants, highlight the climate crisis, community, war’s impact on civilians, and the importance of press photography around the world.

The announcement today opens the world premiere of the annual exhibition and marks the start of the worldwide tour, which will be on display in more than 60 cities.

The exhibition opens to the public on Saturday 22 April and will be on view until 30 July.

The winners

With Russia’s war in Ukraine constantly in the news, the Photo of the Year goes to Evgeniy Maloletka for his confronting image, Mariupol Maternity Hospital Airstrike, from the siege of Mariupol for perfectly capturing the human suffering caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in a single image.

The Story of the Year goes to The Price of Peace in Afghanistan, nine haunting but beautiful photos by Mads Nissen, which refuses to let us forget the people of Afghanistan living now under the Taliban and with a lack of international aid.

The Long-Term Project Award goes to Anush Babajanyan, for her work spanning years to highlight a story not often covered outside Central Asia about water management impacts after the end of the Soviet Union made worse by the climate crisis – but most importantly, showing the powerful spirit of people forced to adapt to new realities. The project is called Battered Waters.

The Open Format Award goes to Mohamed Mahdy for Here, The Doors Don’t Know Me. Mahdy collaborates with neighborhood residents of Al Max, in Alexandria, Egypt, to preserve the memory of their fast-disappearing fishing village and has invited the whole world to participate through an interactive website.